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Any problems with Mac Pros and Boot Camp?

Windows7 Ultimate on Mac Pro and iMac

I have had zero problems running windows 7 Ultimate on a 16GB 2010 Mac 2x 2.93 6 core and on a mid-2007 iMac dual core. I run financial applications (e.g., OptionsXpress, StreetSmartEdge, eSignal), Visual Studio 2010 IDE, Adobe Pro, Safari, Microsoft Office, and many other home office apps. The only limitation I have encountered is that you cannot install Windows on a Mac running a RAID card ( this is a documented limitation). Otherwise I have had better performance and reliability running on the Mac Pro than I did on a high-end Dell workstation.
 
dh2005 said:
Hello folks,

It wouldn't have struck me to ask this - but I read a really pissy consumer review of the 2010 Mac Pro on a review site (CNET, I think...), where the guy wailed on every single aspect of the machine. One thing he moaned about was that Windows programs didn't work properly, because the Xeon processors weren't properly configured within Boot Camp.

If I get a Mac Pro, I'll have to Boot Camp it because certain programs that I use don't have Mac equivalents.

Any comments? Cheers,



DH.
Click to expand...

I run bootcamp and Win XP on a 2010 Quad and have had zero issues with Windows programs.

cheers
JohnG
 
You wont have any problems OP. Bootcamp sets up a native windows install which is just like running regular windows. I have to switch between windows and mac all the time when working in UDK.
 
I use boot camp and switch my OS at least once a day. Windows 7 64-bit and 2010 Mac Pro. Using Windows on this machine is completely indistinguishable from using it on a PC. I have no idea what that reviewer is talking about. That thing about CPUs not being configured properly doesn't make any sense.

I find there are two absolutely crucial things to do after Windows installation for everything to work properly:
(1) Install the boot camp drivers from Apple and reboot.
(2) Install the latest video card drivers directly from the card manufacturer and reboot.

After that, you should install all Windows updates and install Microsoft Security Essentials.
 
I'd like to thank everybody for their advice. I'm pressing ahead with my plan to buy a second-hand Mac Pro... but I'm having serious trouble comparing like with like.

For instance, when I browse eBay, I see listings for '2 x dual-core 3.0GHz Xeons', '1 x quad-core 2.66 Xeon' etc. 667MHz Ram, 800MHz RAM etc. 8800/7300/1900/2600 GPUs... Jesus, I don't know what the Hell I'm looking at.


The machine I'm looking for should have CPU enough to best my current iMac - a quad-core 2.8GHz Core i5 - and a GPU that either bests my current GPU - a 5850m - or one that can be upgraded into 5870-and-beyond territory. The option for dual video cards would be a bonus, but it's not essential.


Sorry for the convoluted question. If anyone can help, I'd appreciate it.
 
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What you are looking for is a at least a 2008 or better Mac Pro if you want it to be as good or better then your current iMac. The first gen Mac Pro's came with two dual core processors as stock and are often incorrectly described as 'quad cores' because they add the two processors together. You are looking for a Mac Pro 3,1 or better I would think.
 
Thanks.

So, are the 2008 models able to take two graphics cards? Also, which speed of RAM are we talking about, here? Very often, the sellers don't give the "3,1" etc. designation. I'm looking for other clues...!
 
Thanks. One more general question, please:

Do all modern video cards fit a PCI-e 2.0 slot? It's been a long time since I knew about this kinda thing - not since the days of AGP x4...!
 
dh2005 said:
The machine I'm looking for should have CPU enough to best my current iMac - a quad-core 2.8GHz Core i5 - and a GPU that either bests my current GPU - a 5850m - or one that can be upgraded into 5870-and-beyond territory. The option for dual video cards would be a bonus, but it's not essential.
Click to expand...

So something to keep in mind...

An i5 is at least a 2009 era processor.

2008's are solid machines (I own one), but core for core they might be slower. If you want a faster 2008, get an 8 core 2008.

The 2009's are the first to use the same kind of processor as your iMac. 8 cores would still be way faster on a 2009, but at least 4 cores wouldn't be a step back.
 
dh2005 said:
Thanks. One more general question, please:

Do all modern video cards fit a PCI-e 2.0 slot? It's been a long time since I knew about this kinda thing - not since the days of AGP x4...!
Click to expand...

Yes all modern video cards fit in a PCI Express slot, I believe he current revision of PCI Express is 2.1
 
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